Early last week, Kevin Guyette learned that he had lost his Saturday starting spot and might be taken out of the rotation all together.
Yesterday, UA baseball head coach Andy Lopez stuck with Guyette, starting him in the series rubber match against Sacramento State.
It paid off.
Guyette threw 6.2 innings of one-run ball in earning the 11-6 win for No. 16 Arizona (9-6-1) and completing the series win for the Wildcats over the Hornets (11-11).
"You never think about going back (in the rotation). You always think about moving into the Friday spot," Guyette said. "I was struggling, but I was happy to have the opportunity to throw again this weekend."
Guyette (2-2) came into yesterday's contest with an ERA nearing 10 and averaging just over four innings per outing.
"He knows that he was struggling the last few weeks," Lopez said. "Kevin put us into a great position and pitched a great game."
The Wildcats scored runs in five out of the first six innings and held off a late run by Sacramento State to earn the victory.
After Guyette left the game midway through the seventh inning, Wildcat relievers gave up five runs over the eighth and ninth innings, but stranded the bases loaded in the ninth to preserve the win.
Senior third baseman Moises Duran led the Arizona offensive attack, going 4-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored.
Freshman designated hitter Bill Rhinehart added three RBIs of his own in a 2-for-3 effort.
In all, the Wildcats posted 11 runs on 15 hits.
"The offense showed up today, which was a good blessing," Lopez said.
Arizona split Saturday's doubleheader, with the Hornets losing the first game 9-8 before coming back to win the second, 5-2.
The Wildcats and Hornets were forced to play two on Saturday because of travel issues with Sacramento State. Weather delayed the team's flight, which arrived late Friday night.
In the first game, the Wildcats cruised to a 5-0 lead heading into the sixth inning, but gave up four runs in the sixth and compiled a season-high five errors.
Junior Koley Kolberg (1-1) had a one-hitter going into the fifth, but ended up giving up seven runs, only two of which were earned, in six innings of work.
Arizona's pitching surrendered two more runs, and the Wildcat comeback fell one run short at 9-8.
"You have to play nine solid innings and we didn't," Lopez said. "I think they learned a great lesson."
Freshman Mark Melancon (3-2) picked up the loss.
Arizona bounced back in the second game, got 8 2/3 innings from sophomore Luis Cortez, and beat Sacramento State 5-2.
Cortez (2-1) gave up two runs and eight hits while striking out eight and earning the victory.
Sophomore outfielder Trevor Crowe was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored for the Wildcats.
"Overall, I thought the pitching was pretty good on the weekend, and we got a couple guys on track offensively," Lopez said.
Arizona will travel to Round Rock, Texas, next weekend for the Express College Classic.